Extractor load breaker



Aug. 14, 1951 J. E. VETORINO EXTRACTOR LOAD BREAKER 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed June 17, 1949 1522182330 sepfi/EVeipa-i (7 42402274 Aug. 14, 1951 J. E. VETORINO 2,563,890

EXTRACTOR LOAD BREAKER Filed June 17, 1949 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 J. E. VETORINO EXTRACTOR LOAD BREAKER Aug. 14, 1951 Filed June 17, 1949 ose zzih/E by 7 a M I n I n n 4 b t I O I patented Aug. 14 1951 UNI T E D "S TATES FATE N OFFICE 'EXTR'AOTOE-LOAD' BREAKER Joseph E. Vetorino, New.Bedford, Mas s.

ApplicationJune ll, 1949,=Se ri-al No. 99,800

9 C aims- 1 wThis invention 1 relates to: load. breakers foriextractors. It is particularly concerned with load breakers fcrcommercial extractors of:thetype now in common useiin commercialllaundries. A typical form .of such extractor comprises two identical semi-I'cylindrical halves, each having .-.a hinged drop bottom normallyllatched in,closed positionvduring theextracting operation. This bottom is unlatchediafter the Water-has been extracted to permit the load to .be dropped out through the bottomopening.

.One of the problems .zpresent inextractors of alltypes,=whether..of thedrop bottom form in which itheiloa'deis removed from the bottom or of the earlier conventional "form in which the loa'd is-removed from the =,top; .is .the freeing of the load from the extractor Wall. This wall is acircular sheet of metal having a very .large number of perforations therethroughby which the .water escapes :as the extractor'is .whirledat high speed. .The centrifugal forcedeveloped=is so great that the load, generally. clothlin various forms such :as clothing, sheets, .pillow icases, diapers, etc., is forced into thewall perforations to suchanextentthat it. becomes firmly anchored to resist subsequent removal.

It has therefore been necessary heretofore to spend considerable time and effort :in pulling the clothes away from the extractor wall by hand. The .slow, detaching movement. by; hand. is preferably toward the center of the extractor .as that is the direction in which the :load can be most easilyseparatedfrom.its engagement with the wall perforations. Whentherloa'd'consists of relatively fragilearticles. such as handkerchiets, diapers and other soft open-weave cloths, the operator in pulling the load loose may. unwittingly tear the articles unless great-care is used. Damaged articles, of' course, must be paid forandxthere is commonlyahigh damage loss incidentto the current method offreeing the load.

The present. invention is designed to overcome the disadvantages aforesaid by. providing a new and novel means .for quickly and. safely freeing the load from theoextractor wall to such :an ten that w t eh needzhottomop n. th load will be capable of falling of; its "own weight through the bottom'openin linde exist ng conditionsthisdoes not occur as the-weightzof the load not sum i n i tselfltotenabl itt pull away from its engagement in the wallppen-r ings.

flfhee to loedbreake by w ichh me-the res n entio w l b sn w -i particula ly su table for -;us,e with the, d ided typ .Qf e

tractorbasket. A single. load breaking unitronly is ineeded in-each semi-circular basket. Each load; breaker. unitlwill be: placed at the mid-point of therwall of..each half basket sothat the units inxthetwo halfbaskets will be diametricallyopposite each other. In this .way the dynamic balance ,yvill ,be unchanged during the extracting operation and thedislodging forcebf the .load breaker whensactuated will be applied @centrally of=the load in each halfvbasket. By having the force applied centrallyithetclothes will be pulled away fromthesbasket wall to-an equal extent on both .sides. of the'load breaker, thus accomplishinguniform and quick freeing of the load from the-wall. I -v'The present invention also contemplates the utilization of the falling weight of the basket bottom after it is unlatched. "The bottom is connected in a-new and-novelmanner totheload breaker elements so that it will give a quick powerful pull that will readily commence the initial separation of the'loadfrom the wall. After the bottom-hasswung downwardly to a position far enough tohave freed the load, theeonnection between the bottom and the load breaker will automatic lly separate and the parts will then 'fallto vertical position out of the path of the dislodged load which is then able to fall fre ly f om the basket to a collection pointlbelovv.

Qther objects of the invention will appear as thedescriptionproceeds with the aid of the-ac- Qqmna yina r w n s which Fig. 1 is a plan view of a pair of conventional extractor baskets showing theyload in the apprqximate position it wilhassume after the liquid has been extracted by whirling. The load is roke way n pa to S w m r lainly the load breaking mechanism.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged vertical section on :the line .Eig. 3 is .a vertical section similar to Fig. :2 with the load; breaker; mechanism'being operated fa l i bo tom. l igngl is a plan view ont he .line-. 4.4 ofi ig. 3.

.;Fig. 5 is .ayiew similar to Figs'2 and 3 with he load breaker "mechanism disconnected from the bottom-and showing the load falling through.

.Fi -fi i a fra menta vie l okinat th left on line-G E- I- igL-Z.

-Fzi .1. m n r i wiq kin su ar on the line 1.7-1 of Eig.-2.

:E'is- 8111s jsec io a :2 a view .91 th n 1 of- E-ig 2.

94s anerseee r enla edidetailedwiewwcf 3 the connecting hook mounted on th hinged bottom.

Fig. is a fragmentary plan view similar to Fig. 8 with the load omitted.

Referring to Fig. 1, a conventional extractor basket is shown, consisting of two halves 2 and 3. Each half is identical with the other and a description of one half will therefore sufiice as a description of the other. Reference hereafter will be made to the left half basket 3. This comprises a semi-cylindrical perforated wall 4 full of multiple perforations 6 (see Figs. 2 and 6) and having an inwardly turned upper lip or flange 8. The bottom is closed by a semi-circular member In, suitably hinged at each end at 12 and I4. The bottom is held in normal closed position by means of a latch l6 which may be sprung outwardly through a vertical opening in the wall to release the bottom so that it may swing downwardly.

The half basket has a straight unperforate inner side l8 which at the center has a conical section which overlies the curved up-turned inner edge 22 of bottom Ill. Thus, when the bottom is in horizontal latched position, the half basket may be filled with clothes from which the water is to be extracted.

It is customary in present day construction to provide rollers or casters as an integral part of the bottom so that each half basket when out of the whirler may be conveniently moved. The casters or rollers are shown in Fig. l at 24, 26 and 28, the axles of which are supported by forks of the type indicated in Fig. 2 at 35. The caster supports are securely mounted in turn to the underside of upwardly extending recesses in the bottom H]. The three recesses in the bottom of basket 2 are indicated at 32, 34 and 36. These recesses are formed by suitably shaped metal cups which are riveted to the bottom around cut-away areas through which the casters extend downwardly. The present invention, however, will op- 4 tached to the basket wall by means of the small portions of the clothes which centrifugal force has driven into the multiple perforations in the basket wall.

Applicant has, therefore, found it expedient to provide mechanical means as a substitute for the V the clothes during the extracting operation and erate just as effectively with a basket of the type I in which the bottom does not have casters. The latch [6 that holds the bottom It! in normal position may be swung outwardly through a vertical opening in the lower side of the basket through the use of a suitable tool whereupon the bottom may drop of its own weight. To relatch the bottom, it is merely necessary to swing it up until the latch has snapped into locking position. A stop 38 limits upward movement of the bottom.

The description thus far has been of a typical basket of the type now found in common use in commercial laundries. The load breaker mechanism which will be described hereinafter is applied to this basket either as an accessory after the basket is already in use or it may be built into the basket as an integral part at the time of manufacture,

It will be understood that after the two half baskets have been loaded with wet clothes, they will be lowered into a closely fitting outer basket which is arranged for high speed rotation. As the extracting operation proceeds, the water will pass outwardly through the perforations'ofthe baskets and the clothes will-be compacted until they have reached approximately the position shown by the line 40 in Figs. 1 and 2. At this is connected to the bottom in such manner that when the bottom is unlatched it will, in dropping, actuate the load breaker mechanism to a degree suflicient to free the load from the wall over a substantial arc so that the weight of the load thereafter will be sufficient to pull the clothes free from that part of the wall from which they have not been heretofore disengaged by operation of the load breaking mechanism.

Immediately upon freeing the load, the mechanism is automatically released from the bottom so that all parts may drop to a vertical position eliminating any obstruction to the free fall of the clothes from the basket.

The mechanism that has just been briefly described comprises a link in the form of a flat strip 42 hinged at 44 to the top flange 8. Strip 42 extends to a point close to the wall 4. It is pivotally connected at its end 46 to a shallow, wide vertical channel 48. This'channel in turn extends downwardly to a point a short distance above stop 38 where it in turn is hingedly connected at 50 to a long link'52 having a sloping portion 53 and downwardly turned sides 54 which overlie the sides ofv the caster recess or box 32. Sloping portion 53 in turn is connected to a flat strip 56 which lies close to the bottom 10. Portion 53 and strip 55 constitute the link 52. The end of strip 56 has welded thereto a U-shaped loop of bar stock 58 which is arranged for engagement with a novel type of automatically releasing hook 60. See Fig. 9. Hook 6!] is securely aflixed to bottom Ill by screws or bolts 62 and 64.

When the bottom of the basket'is closed, the load breaker mechanism will be close against the wall and bottomof the basket as illustrated in Figs. 1, 2, -6, '7, 8 and 10. When the extracting has been completed and the basket has been moved to a position where the clothes are to be dropped, latch I6 is operated to release the bottom which immediately commences to swing downwardly carrying with it link 52 and all-the other related parts. The clothes have, of course, been pressing with great force against channel 48 but the pull-on link 52 by the heavy downwardly swinging bottom. H! is sufficient to move channel 48 downwardly and to the right as illustrated in Fig. 3. This pulls "the load away from the wall 4 as shown in Fig. 4 at66 and 68. Since channel 48 is symmetrically disposed with respect to the load, the activating force will be in -a radial direction inwardly which provides maximumeifectiveness in loosening the load from the wall. The inner circumference of the load will be movedto the position suggested by the lines- 10 and T2 in Fig. 4 and at 'l4 in Fig. 3; Atthis point it may have reached slight engagement with the bottom of cone-2fll r 3 While the Weight of the bottom itself pullingon link 52 may be sufficient to cause adequate dislodge'ment of the "load, it"is customary,' how-'- ever, for the operatorto push with his han'd encased against the bottom so as toincrease the ellslodging force. As *th-is is done, the bottom is moved more --towa-rd the -vertieal to reach the point at which the-loop id willautomatioallydisengageitselffron'fhook 60. i a

"It can be seen in Fig. *9 that hook 613 *has an upturned lip l 6 reinforced by longitudinal struts l8an'd 80. Lip -16 is-a'dapted to engage loopi58. lip 16 assumes 'a more vertical position as thebottom swings-open, apoinbwill be reached where-1001358 will-slideupwardly ofi lip 1-6 whereupon-the link "52 and bottom Ml -will -be freed of each other. When th-is -oeeurs *the bottom and link "52 will both --'drop to --vertical position as shown in Fig. 5. Thus the-spaceatthebottom of thebasket is "completely open so thatthe load now dislodged may-falldownwardlyand "out underitsown weight.

inorder to free the -channelW8 as'corrnaletely as 2 possible from the '-load when the bottom I similar ingeneral to thet-ype' used ondoonhinges isinoorporated at hinge li. "Ihissfirihgisdtisigned to swing link 42 upwardly-to theposition shown-in Figs. 2 and 5,"as soon as the-downward l pull on channel "'48 'has been *released. "In this way the channel *48 is "not :only separated 'from the load but is restored "to" initial position prior tofthe reclosing-of the bottom.

"In Fig. 9 i it will be noted thah'hook 6!] has-"a downturned' 'lip- 84 which'extendsaway-from"the bottoma greater distance-than lip l'fi. This lip84 serves two purposes whenthe "b ottom has reached vertical= positionfas shown in Figkfi. =Lip-84 will prevent the downwardly moving clothes from catching on lip-I6. Thereafter,-when*the bottom isto be closed to -be. resetto the position shown in Fig. 2, the operator "swingslink *2toward the bottom and at thesame timeswings bottom l0 upwardly towardlatched position. Where the are of loop 58 intersects thearc of lip 16, the two may be re-engagedand then as'the operator continues to swing the bottom I D .upwa-rdly, I lip 84 will press against loop 58 to-prevent the parts from becoming unhooked as the bottom continues upwardly toward horizontal relatched position.

From the foregoing description it will be seen that channel 48 .is sw ung xthrough a downward inward are as .theload ,breakingroperation; roceeds. It also remains during this period of movement substantially parallel to the wall. This result is achieved automatically as the result of the pressure of the load over the length of member 48. The load breaking effort would be insufficient if the channel 48 did not move away from the wall over its entire length but instead,

for example, merely pivoted at 46 without being pulled downwardly as well as inwardly as shown in Fig. 3. It will also be seen that downward inward movement of channel 48 results in corresponding downward and inward swinging movement of link 42 which assists in freeing the load at the top as it presses downwardly and inwardly on that part of the load with which it is in contact.

While the pull on channel 48 has been provided by link 52 connected with bottom l0, nevertheless it will be understood that other mechanical means might be devised for causing a corresponding load breaking movement of link 42 and channel 48. Such mechanism would be arranged to move these parts downwardly and inwardly by lever means other than the bottom I0. In any case, however, it will be noted that the load breaking force is applied symmetrically of the from the perforated wall of a centrifugal :ex-

T and 'link 52 have separated, 'a *coil spring82 tractor basket of the -drop bottom type -=antl having an inwardly extending top flange, said lead breaker comprising incombinationwith said basket a vertically extending member normally positioned close m and at 'the midpoint..-of said basket wall so that the load :will be disposed symmetrically thereto,arflrstlinkconnectingzsaifi member to said flange, .a second .link connecting said member .to :said bottom :when the latter .is in closedposition, said member and linksoperable .upon. downward movement :of ssaid bottom tomove said.member downwardly sand inwardl adistance. sufficient to free said .load from said wall-over asubstantiakarcon both-sides oft'said member and meanscompelling disconnectioncof sa d second link and; said bottom when. said botom has swung downwardly :from its n rma closed. horizontal position through-a determina- 1 ble. an le- .2. Anextractorload breaker forfreein a load from the perforated wall of .a centrifugal extractor basket of the drop bottom type and havinglan inwardly extending top flange as set forthiin claim 1, said first link having spring to-said bottom, means on said second link for engaging said hook, :said hookand second link adapted for automatic-disengagement when. said bottom has swung downwardly at least far enough -,to cause said load .to be v substantia'lly freed from said wall.

4. An extractor load breaker for freeing a load from the perforated wall of a centrifugal extractor basket of the drop bottom type and having an inwardly extending top flange as set forth in claim 1, said first link hinged to said flange near the inner periphery thereof and of such length as to be capable of swinging movement upwardly to lie close against the underside of said flange with said member close to said basket wall, said second link being substantially longer than said first link.

5. An extractor load breaker for freeing a load from the perforated wall of a centrifugal extractor basket of the drop bottom type and having an inwardly extending top flange as set forth in claim 1, said bottom having an upwardly extending recess in vertical alignment with said member with a caster located in said recess, said second link shaped to overlie and conform generally with the top of said recess and the bottom adjacent thereto.

6. An extractor load breaker for freeing a load from the perforated wall of a centrifugal extractor basket of the drop bottom type and having an inwardly extending top flange, said 7., load breaker comprising in combination with said basket a plurality of links in series, the free end of one of the end links being pivotally connected to said flange inwardly of said wall, the other end link having on its free end a hook engaging member,. another link between said end links normally being in vertical position against said wall, a hook attached to said bottom adapted to engage said hook engaging member, and a lip arranged to overlie said hook when said bottom is in vertical position to prevent clothes being discharged from said basket through the bottom opening from being caught on said hook.

'7. An extractor load breaker for freeing a load from the perforated wall of a centrifugal extractor basket of the drop bottom type and having an inwardly extending top flange, said load breaker comprising in combination with said basket a member normally located in vertical position close to and at the mid-point of said basket wall so that the load will be disposed symmetrically.

thereto, a first link connecting said member to said flange, a second link connecting said member to said bottom when the latter is in closed position, the connection between said second link and bottom comprising a hook affixed to said bottom and means on said second link for engaging said hook, said hook and second link adapted for automatic disengagement when said bottom has swung downwardly at least far enough to cause said load to be substantially freed from said wall, said second link being longer than the straight line distance from the point of connection of said second link with said member to the hook on said bottom when said member is in normal position close to said wall and said bottom is in closed position. r

8. An extractor load breaker for freeing a load from the perforated wall of a centrifugal extractor basket of the drop bottom type and having an inwardly extending top flange, said load breaker comprising in combination with said basket a member normally located in a vertical position close to and at the mid-point of said basket wall so that the load will be disposed symmetrically thereto, a first link connecting said member to said flange, a second link connecting said member to said bottom when the latter is in closed position; the connection between said 8 second link and bottom comprising a hook affixed to said bottom and means on said second link for engaging said hook, said hook and second link adapted for automatic disengagement when said bottom has swung downwardly at least far enough to cause said load to be sustantially freed from said wall, said second link being sufiiciently longer than the straight line distance from the point of connection of said second link with said member to the hook on said bottom when said inwardly extending top flange, said load breaker comprising in combination with said basket, three links in series, a first link pivoted to said flange and extending radially outwardly from said pivot, a second link longer than said first link extending vertically close to said basket wall for a major portion of the vertical dimension of said wall, a third link extending from the lower end of said second link along said bottom to a point of connection with said bottom which point of con nection is closer to the axis of said basket than the pivot of said'flrst link on said flange, and connecting means between said third link and said bottom, said means acting to draw said third link inwardly and downwardly as said bottom swings downwardly on being released for opening, said connecting means including automatic releasing mechanism for freeing said third link from said bottom when the angle between said, bottom and third link has increased to a pref determined degree.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 13,788 Great Britain 1902' 28,062 Great Britain 1906 v JOSEPH E. VETORINO. 

